Maybe One Day
by gwvixen21
Summary: Lily is the only one for James.  When he finally gets her to see it, life gets in the way.  After Hogwarts they go their separate ways.  Now what happens when they both start fighting for the Order years later.  Will he ever be able to get her back and ke
1. Chapter 1

Lily Evans was a beautiful bright young lady. Looking back over her life she always knew that she was different. But she never knew how different until her eleventh year. She received a letter, but not just any letter. A letter from Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry.

Her parents were utterly delighted, her sister was utterly disgusted, and she was on cloud nine. Ever since then, Christmas came early on September 1st when she boarded the Hogwarts Express. Her first night she had been sorted into Gryffindor. Starting classes the next day was wonderful.

Soaking everything in like a sponge, Lily Evans was quickly the top of her class and stayed there every year since. She was an exceptionally sweet girl making friends instantly with almost everyone in her class, except most of the Slytherins and not because she didn't try. She enjoyed everything about this place, everything except for a certain messy haired Marauder sitting a few rows back.

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James had been staring at her for the last thirty minutes. She had been gazing out the window as Professor Binns gave yet another boring lecture about a goblin rebellion. She leaned lazily against her hand looking as if she was in a state of reflection. How he wished Lily was thinking about him.

She was smiling slightly as green eyes sparkled. Her beautiful slightly curly auburn hair was pulled back in a low pony-tail. Lily had smooth pale skin and a lean frame that was curvaceous in just the right spots.

Sirius glanced over to see James, yet again staring at Lily. "Prongs, man, snap out of it. There are other girls in this school incase you haven't noticed. Girls that fall all over you!"

James let out a sigh, for him other girls didn't exist. "Sod off" was all that he could manage to get out. He glanced back over at Lily. She had just wet her lips by gliding her tongue ever so lightly over them. Oh, how her enticing lips were practically screaming to be kissed; now if she would only listen to them.

He ripped of a small piece of parchment scratching "Go to Hogsmade with me this weekend." Balling it up, he launched it her way. It hit her right in the back of the head. Not exactly what he had in mind.

Lily was snapped out of her daze by something colliding with her head. It could only be Potter! She whipped around and sure enough there he was giving her that smirk.

James flicked his wand and she half expected to be hexed. The ball of paper was now levitating in front of her face. Rolling her eyes, Lily grabbed the paper in front of her and read it.

Typical Potter behavior. She wanted to slap the smugness right off of his face. She grabbed her quill writing "I told you last year Potter I would rather go out with the giant squid than go on a date with you. At that is final!"

She balled the note back up. She turned and threw it as hard as she could, smiling as it hit him right in the middle of his forehead. As the bell rang, Lily hurdled her bag onto her shoulder as quickly as possible in the attempts to escape Potter at all cost.

James looked up from reading the note and saw Lily practically sprinting for the door. He turned to Remus who had been watching the whole exchange and was now laugh. "James. Let her go. Asking her out every time you get her in your sight hasn't worked for the past three years. What makes you think that it is going to work now?"

James sighed as he walked out the History of Magic classroom. Exasperated he looked at Remus. "What exactly do you expect me to do Moony?"

"Look Prongs I patrol with her this at least three times a week. Give me a chance to talk to her."

James couldn't help but shoot an "I hate you for it" look Remus' way. "Yeah don't remind me."

Sirius, playfully punching Remus on the arm had to interject, "Moony you know if it was anyone but you who got to spend that much time with Lily, Prongs here would turn them into a fish and feed them to the giant squid."

Ignoring Sirius, he turning back to James. "We only have a month left before summer break; just give her some space until then. Look just try to be her friend, at least that way she will have a civilized conversation with you."

Mary looked up as Lily came storming thru the library doors. Lily sat down at the table with a huff as Madam Prince shot her a rather irritated look.

"What did Potter do now?"

Lily glanced up, "What makes you think that it was Potter?"

A smile shot across Mary's face. "Because he is the only one who can make you look fit to kill and turn that shade of red!"

Lily rolled her eyes at her friend. "Please don't mention his name again. I want to hurry and finish the last inch of assignment. I don't want to be stuck in here all day!"

In a panic Mary asked, "Which one? Did I do it?" Lily laughed at her friend.

"Yeah. It was the one on Amortentia."

"Lily. You already have two inches to many!" She knew Lily was top of the class, however this was going a little far even for her.

"I need to know the potion inside and out just in case Potter gets tired of asking me out and wants to take matters in his own hands! If you ever see me with the rest of the Potter Fan Club saying "I love you James!" you better go get Slughorn immediately!"

Mary couldn't help but giggle at best friend. "You know he really isn't as bad as you claim. At least he hasn't been since you told me off by the lake last year." Turning and walking away Lily called back "I'm ignoring you!"

After spending the rest of the day on the grounds with Mary, Lily was making her way back to the castle for her night to patrol. She heard a voice call out "Hey Lils, you looking for me?"

Remus Lupin, she would know that voice anywhere. He was her fellow 6th year Prefect and other than Mary, her closest friend.

Remus and the rest of his degenerate friends, Sirius Black, Peter Perrigrew, and James Potter, were known as the Marauders. Even though they were only in their 6th year, they were legendary. Their pranks were on a level that Hogwarts had never seen. They were talented wizards, loved by the teachers, loved by the girls, and every guy wanted to be one of them. It was scandalous the way that girls followed them around, willing to jump into the nearest broom closet. They had set the record for most detentions their first year and have broken it every year since.

Sirius was devilishly handsome with a muscular build and dark hair that fell in his eyes with a sort of casual elegance. He was by far the scoundrel of the group.

Peter was a short lumpy shy type of boy. He wasn't very bright, nor did he have any special qualities about him. People often said that the only reason the other boys let him hang around was because they felt sorry for him. Lily suspected this to be the truth.

Remus was extremely kind, considerate, level headed, and always trying to talk some since into the rest of his friends. He reminded Lily a lot of her self.

And then there was James. His hair was always in a mess, yet it seemed to be a perfect fit for him. James had athletic build and a since of humor to match. He was always lighthearted, always joking. And when he smiled, he could melt the coldest of hearts. If that wasn't a deadly combination, there was his eyes. James had mesmerizing hazel eyes that you could loose yourself in.

Snapping out of her thoughts, she turned and smiled at Remus. "Running late for patrol again are we? If you like Quidditch so much you should have tried out for the team!"

Remus laughed at how well she knew him. "I had to see how well Sirius and James are playing. Our last game is tomorrow and we are playing for the cup you know!"

"Yes, I am fully aware. How are they doing by the way?"

Remus had found his opening. "Well Sirius is out of his mind as always. James on the other hand is in true form. I doubt there is a better Seeker in the world than James."

Lily snorted, "So he is still able to fly with that over-sized head of his."

His smile faded some at that response. "You know Lily; he is not like that anymore. He has changed a lot over the past year."

Lily snorted again. "Really, well I have not seen it; and you know I'm a pretty observant person!"

Now his smile was gone. Taking the stern older brother voice he said, "Give him a chance to show it to you. He just wants some of your attention Lily, and if he has to show his ass to get it then he will. He would do anything for you and you know that. He is not the only stubborn one you know."

Lily glared. "And what is that suppose to mean? I really don't want to get into this right now. Let go see how many 4th years we can find sneaking out to snog."

Typical Lily, he thought, change the subject when it comes to James. He really enjoyed spending time with Lily, but this was going to be a long night!


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter 2

Remus, Lily, and Mary sat in the stands with the other Gryffindor students. It was the last match of the season and Ravenclaw had been putting up a good fight. Sirius how ever had been on top of his game. He alone had scored 145 points. Lily glanced up again to see where James was flying. He was circling high above the other players. She continued watching him for a few moments; he really did have a way with a broom. She had never seen anyone who could fly quite as well as James.

James could feel a pair of eyes intently focusing on him. He turned round and his eyes connected with Lily's. It had only lasted a second before she hastily looked away. Lily was turning slightly red. Was she blushing when I caught her looking at me? James rapidly pushed the thought from his head. He had to keep his attention on the match.

Remus surveyed Lily as she was clearly trying to hide that she had been watching James for sometime now and James had undoubtedly noticed. He did not want to add to her embarrassment, but couldn't help himself as he leaned over and said "I wasn't joking when I told you he was one of the best Seekers in the world."

If it was even possible Lily started blushing even more that she had been. Before she could tell Remus, she didn't know what he was talking about; the crowd broke out in roars. James was racing through the air with the Ravenclaw seeker behind him. Lily gasped as James was diving straight towards the ground. Lily now had a tight hold on Remus' arm. "If he doesn't pull up now he is going to get hurt!" Just as Lily had finished saying the words, James had jerked his broom upright. As he was landing on the ground a rush of relief washed over Lily. She peered down at the pitch as James stood holding up the Snitch for everyone to see.

If Remus hadn't have been there, he wouldn't have believed what he had just witnessed. Lily had been genuinely worried that James was going to get hurt and equally relieved when he was safe on the ground. "You know your a lot stronger that you look. I'm going to have a burse on that arm by tonight."

"Oh, I sorry! I did realize." was all that Lily could manage to get out before her voice left her. There she was blushing for the second time today. Why had see been so uneasy at the thought of James getting hurt; why had it shaken her so. She was lost in her thoughts as she followed Remus out of the stands. She was mindlessly walking onto the field when she was pulled into a tight hug. He was wet and sweaty.

Sirius lifted Lily in the air and twirled her around, bring her out of her daze. "We won Lily, we won!" He put her back down, bending so that he was now eye-level with her. She had a confused look on her face. "Are you alright? Is something wrong?"

Lily shook her head slightly, now paying attention to Sirius. "No, everything is fine. Congratulations! You were brilliant! Look I'll see you back in the common room. I'm going to start setting up for the party. Bye." She hurried off the pitch headed for the Gryffindor Tower. "I would have been that concerned no matter who it was." she keep thinking over and over. Deep down she didn't know if she really meant it.

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The common room exploded with applauds and excitement as James and Sirius came thru the portrait hole with the rest of the Gryffindor Quidditch team. As soon as James made it past the crowd of people waiting to congratulate them at the door, he scanned the room looking for the delectable red head. Remus had informed him of the off-field events of the day. At that moment James felt as if he had just won the Quidditch Cup all over again. He caught sight of her sitting on a sofa in front of the fire talking to Mary and the other sixth year girls. She was bewitching when she smiled; she always seemed to captivate anyone who was near her.

Sirius slapped James on the back, breaking him away from his thoughts. "How many times do you think McGonagall will have to come up here to break up our little soiree?"

"Last time we threw a party this size, it took her until two in the morning. I don't think that she stands a chance tonight!" James couldn't help laughing as he said it. "Come on, let's get this party started."

The party had been going on for hours now. Lily was having an amazing time. She was making her way off of the dance floor that had been conjured for the event. She had been dancing with Mary and Alice for quite sometime now. Walking over to a table filled with cauldron cake, pumpkin pasties, and butterbeer, she started laughing. "How do the guys always managed to get enough food and butterbeer to last all night?"

Alice shook her head, "I have no idea, but you don't hear me complaining." Watching the room over Lily's shoulder, Alice saw James moving his way thru the crowd. He seemed to be having some difficulty. After he had finally shaken off various girls bidding for his attention, Frank Longbottom had stopped him to talk. She felt sorry for him as he frequently glanced in Lily's direction. "I'm going to ask someone to dance, be back in a bit." She headed off with her sights set for Longbottom. James at least deserved a chance to try to talk to Lily.

Lily had just finished a cauldron cake as she took her butterbeer and sat on a sofa that had been pushed ageist the wall. She was taking a rather large swig, when she felt someone sit by her. Putting down her empty glass, she looked over to see James. "What do you want?"

"I just wanted to say thank you for helping put this shindig together." By the look on her face that must have taken her by surprise. James insides seemed to jump as she softened a bit and sank back into the couch. Smiling to himself he asked, "So did you enjoy the game?" She gave him an odd glare before nodding yes. "Good. How bout a dance?"

She knew that on was coming! "No thank you, Potter, I have been dancing all night."

James gave a sly smile, "So I have noticed." She definitely knew how to move. He watched as Lily rolled her eyes. "Please Lily. We did win the Quidditch Cup today, if you don't remember. If we had not, we would not have enough points to win the House Cup, which I know you have worked so hard all year to get." Apparently something hadn't come out the right based on the look she was giving him.

"Once again typical Potter behavior, arrogant as ever! Go to hell! And when did you start calling me Lily!" She was almost on her feet and off of the sofa, when she felt hands grab her waist pulling her back down. Losing her balance, Lily fell right into his arms damn near sitting on his lap. Infuriated, she looked up at him expecting to see a domineering smirk. However when her eyes met his, she saw anything but. His normally sparkling hazel eyes were now desolate. He looked as if he had been wounded. Could her words have really injured him? Caught so off guard, Lily even forgot about moving out of his arms. James had never given her this type of reaction before, or had she just not took notice of it before now.

"Maybe if you would stop and listen for a minute, instead of the typical Lily behavior where you storm off, you would understand what I was saying. All I meant was that I have worked my ass off all year to win the Quidditch Cup, because I knew it was one thing that I could do for you. That would help you win the House Cup." He stood up, easily setting Lily on her feet; tighten his hands around her waist as if she was going to apprarate an second. James tilted his head down so that he was only an inch from Lily's ear. "By the way, I've been calling you Lily for most of the year."

Lily couldn't seem to find her voice. She was astounded by what she has just heard, however that was overshadowed by the sensation of how close he was holding her or how his breath felt against her skin. This couldn't be happening. She didn't fall all over James Potter like every other girl in Hogwarts. Shoving him as hard as possible, Lily turned as swiftly as possible putting as much space between them as she could.

Conflict washed over James as he watched her leave. He desperately longed to go after her; however he took Remus' advice and didn't push it. She was now going up the staircase to the dorms. He ran a hand thru his already messy hair, he contemplating what went wrong. Before now the only time he was permitted to wrap his arms around her was in his dreams. Now he finally knew what it felt like and it scared James to death that she might never be there again.

Sirius had spent the last few minutes observing the exchange. Strolling over and patting his friend on the back he said, "I hate to admit it, but I think that Remus is onto something. Our little Lily flower has been action rather strange today when it comes to you!" Sirius laughed and James just hung his head. "I've got firewiskey up in the room. I think you might need some." Leading the way to the spiral staircase, Sirius had the distinctive feeling that he wouldn't be celebrating anymore tonight.


	3. Chapter 3

Lily stood on the platform watching several first years loading their trunks on the train and kissing their parents good-bye. Oh how she missed the way that her parents would see her off every year. Ever since they died in her fourth year, Petunia would drop her off at the street in front of the station. She made it very clear to Lily that she wouldn't be see with the likes of a freak. At least Petunia would drop her off early; to be honest Lily didn't want to be seen with her either. Snapping herself out of her thoughts, she loaded the train pulling her trunk behind her.

Lily had made it to the last compartment, smiling up at the sign that read "Prefects Only". Sliding the door open she walked in putting her trunk away. She wasn't a Prefect this year, she was Head Girl. She could help but get excited at the thought. She bent down to give the trunk one final push; so that it would slide under the seat, when she heard the compartment door slide open.

James leaned against the frame of the door, taking notice of how Lily's skirt was dangerously high as she situated her trunk. His eyes were unwilling to move from her creamy legs until she turned to face him. By the red tint creeping up on her checks, he could tell she realized what he was looking at. Know that she was standing; he had a chance to survey her for the first time since their sixth year. James thought that it was impossible for her to become anymore gorgeous than she already was. However she blossomed even more over the summer. When his eyes finally meet her's, her could see the utter horror on her face. She was looking at his Head Boy badge. He couldn't help but laugh.

"Please tell me that is a joke! Please tell me that yet again, I am the focus of one of your pranks!" Lily couldn't believe it. There was no way that James Potter had been made Head Boy.

James smirk got even wider. He walked out of the door frame closer to where Lily was. "I was as shocked as you when I found out. The funny thing is that I was planning this prank assuming that Remus would be made Head Boy. I guess Dumbledor thought he would save me the trouble. Sorry, sweetheart, but this badge is mine. You're stuck with me all year!" He made sure that he drug out that last sentence.

"Great! My own personal hell!" Lily took a step closer to him, causing him to take a step back. "I swear Potter, put one foot out of line and I will kill you myself! Understood?! And if you think that I am doing all the work by myself, so that you can run around snogging girls, you are sadly mistaken!" Lily was absolutely furious. This year was going to be a disaster.

Remus shook his head as he walked into the compartment followed by several other Prefects. "It's not going well, I take it." Everyone else in the room was starting to giggle at this point.

James looked up. "Man, this one is scary. We won't have a problem with keeping the students in line this year. As soon as they find out that Evans is Head Girl, they won't come out of their dorms!" Even the Slytherins were laughing now. "Alright, everybody sit down before she blows her lid." James sat down at that the front of the room in one of the chairs reserved for him and Lily.

"One more word out of you Potter and you'll never make it to the castle alive! Now unless you want to be here for the entire train ride, please settle down." Lily was beside herself! She normally at least had the train ride in peace. She couldn't help but think that this was going to be the year from hell!

James was handing out the patrol schedules to the prefects as they made their way out of the compartment. He was surprised that he was able to conduct his half of the meeting and was still in one piece. Lily even looked impressed for a moment there, which was not exactly a sentiment they normally shared. James and Lily were now left alone, again not something that normally happened. He contemplated what he was about to say to her knowing that it might not go very well. "Look Lily I want this to be a good year for both of us. Can we just try to be nice to each other?" He was right; this definitely might not go well.

Lily looked up at him with disgust in her eyes. "What?! I guess that you thought since this is our last year that you had to get started extra early at ruining my life! See just how much misery and humiliation you could inflict on me in one year, huh? Well congrats, fifteen minutes into the train ride is a new record!" Lily fought to hide the tears that she could feel building up in her eyes. She turned to stare out the back of the train. Looking out at the beautiful landscape, she knew that they were half way to Hogwarts by now. She was suddenly brought out of her thoughts when she realized that James was standing right behind her. She could fell his breath on her neck, a chill running all the way to her toes. She couldn't hold back the shiver that was now very apparent.

James didn't know what was coming over him; maybe it was the vulnerability that she never let show or the she glowed when the light from the window hit her. He was now standing behind her. The sweet aroma from her hair was so inviting. She must have been freezing because she was slightly shaking. The immediate urge to protect her sweep over him. Before James could comprehend what he was doing, he had his arms wrapped around Lily holding her tight to him. He couldn't believe the excitement that he felt when she didn't pull away. "Lily, I'm sorry. I promise I'll make this year different. You just have to let me try. Please Lily just let me in."

She didn't know if it was how considerate he sounded, how sincere his words were, or how gently he was holding her; she just didn't have the heart to fight with him anymore. "Just leave me alone James and maybe we'll make it through this year." She walked out of the compartment and out of his arms. She tried not to notice the prick of emptiness in her when she was no longer in the safety of his arms.

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A silence engulfed the compartment as Lily walked in. Alice and Mary looked up at her concern written all over their faces. "Let me guess, you already know who got Head Boy?" They both nodded very slowly. "And neither of you told me! Remind me why I shouldn't kill you?" Lily plopped down on the bench beside Mary.

Alice shook her head. "Did it really go that bad? And I though that you and James were getting along so well at the end of last year."

"What in the hell are you talking about? Was I around when this happened or in a comma?" Lily was not going to give into Alice's theory that easy. She had to hear it repeatedly over the summer. How she believed that Lily was falling for James and she just didn't want to admit defeat.

"You know very well what I am talking about. How you acted at the game, and then the party; not to mention the fact that you avoided him like the plague the rest of the year."

"Oh please it was only two weeks and like I don't avoid him like the plague all the time. I do not nor ever will like James Potter, so give it a rest." The last thing that she wanted to do at this moment was talk about James. For some reason she didn't hate him as much anymore and to be honest it scared the shit out of her. Hating him was a much easier emotion to deal with. Not that she new what she was dealing with now. "Alice McKinnon, if you say another word on this subject, I will march down the train until I find a certain Longbottom. And inform him that every other word out of your mouth this summer was Frank this Frank that!"

Mary was giggling rather loudly now, following the whole exchange. "I don't think she will be opening her mouth for the rest of the night. Good one Lily!"

"Oh sod off. And need I remind you Mary, you agree with me."

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The girls walked thru the massive front doors making their way to the beginning of the year feast, when they heard a very boisterous very familiar wolf whistle. Sirius wrapped his arms around Lily and Alice. "Well hello ladies. Looks like summer treated you well. Care to accompany a gentleman to dinner?"

"Sirius please. When have you ever been a gentleman?" Lily said slapping his arm from around her waist just to be replaced by another arm on the other side of her. She glanced over to see that Remus had joined the group as they entered the great hall.

"That maybe true, however Sirius can't help if we just so happen to have the most attractive girls in the school belonging to Gryffindor." Remus let go of Lily as they took their seats at the Gryffindor house table. He made sure to sit so that there was a slight gap in between them. Lily glanced up at him with a look on her face as if to ask what he was doing. Right about that time James slide on to the bench and sat there. Now Lily was shooting him a glance that said something completely different. He knew that look; it was one of her "I can't believe you just did that to me! I'm going to kill you!" looks.

Lily tried to turn and ignore James, which caused to be very unsuccessful. He would lean over and whisper comments in her ear thru the entire sorting; things like "That is Jared the third years little sister" or "That is the youngest Weasley boy. Remember Arthur who graduated when we were second years." Things she would want to know as Head Girl. All the comments were relevant; she had to give him that. She just really did like the close proximity. It unnerved her for some reason.

The sorting was now over and Professor Dumbledore was giving his usually speech. "And now I would like to introduce our head students for this year. James Potter and Lily Evans." Just as Dumbledore said her name assorted species of lilies started for fall all over the great hall. The entire hall broke out into laughter, including most of the professors. Students were gathering them off the tables and placing them in glasses. Some of the younger boys were throwing them at each other. Lily faced James now who was holding a handful of the flowers up for her to take. She sat down as quickly as possible, placing the flowers next to her. She hid her face in her hands, waiting for anything to happen that would take the attention off of her. Suddenly food appeared on the tables, which did the trick.

Her group of friends were still laughing as they loaded food onto their plates. Sirius with a mouth full of chicken said "Sorry Lily flower. We just had to do something to say congraduations."

"Saying it would have been quite good enough thank you." Lily said trying to hunch down, so that she could be hidden from the crowd.

James gave her a little nudge. "You know us Marauders. We like to show it!"

She glared up at him, which she couldn't keep up for long with the smile he was giving her. Lily just rolled her eyes and started filling her plate. This was going to be one crazy year.


	4. Chapter 4

September had come and gone in a blink of an eye. James had been taking his duties as Head Boy seriously, and that left Lily beside herself. He would even show up early to help her set up for the prefect meetings. He had the Quidditch team working twice as hard as they normally did. He was also studying with Lily in their common room during his free time. It wasn't like the years before when he would try to flirt with her claiming it was studying, he was actually studying. Of course he still made time to hang out with Sirius, Remus, and Peter, most often than not in the head quarters. Lily knew how to handle the old James, she would just get mad, yell at him, and then storm off. Lily really didn't want to admit that she was enjoying his company. They were actually being friendly towards each other.

It had definitely been the most busy and awkward month of her life. Being Head Girl came with its responsibility, however it was not without its perks. She and James had been given their own living quarters to share. It was only a few corridors down from Gryffindor Tower. The portrait opened to a comfy common room that was a slightly smaller version of the Gryffindor common room. Lily's favorite thing about their common room was the small library in the corner. It was only a few shelves, however anytime she needed a book it would be there no matter how rare it was. Lily and James each had their own room that connected to the common room. Lily's room was decorated in scarlet and gold. A Gryffindor banner hung on one side of the room with the loin in all of its glory. The room was absolutely elegant. She had a queen size four-poster bed. On the other side of the room was a door that lead to the bathroom that she as James shared. It was as exquisite! It was as big as her bedroom and there was marble everywhere. There was a wall length mirror that had claw feet and a gold carved frame. It had to be goblin made. Lily felt so small standing in front of it staring at her reflection.

Living with James had definitely taken some getting use to. They always seem to be together now. Although Remus, Sirius, Peter, Mary, and Alice seen to be with them ninety percent of the time. She was slowly starting to become more relaxed with the time that she and James were alone with one another. They were finally settling into a comfortable schedule. At this time last year, if someone had told her that she and James would actually be getting along, she would have laughed in their face.

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James was exhausted as he walked back to the castle on Thursday night. Contemplating his current situation, he thought that he had to be the luckiest guy in the world. Things were going very well between him and Lily. He knew better than to push it. This was his last chance to win Lily over and he would be damned if he screwed it up. It was a little past nine when he dragged himself thru the portrait hole. He put down his broom in the usual spot by the door and glanced up to see Lily lying on the floor in front of the fire. He loved how she sprawled out with her homework. She was wearing a slightly fitted white t-shirt and a pair of pajama pants. He couldn't image any woman looking more enticing in something so simple. He was half way across the room when she looked up from her book. He gave her a sideways grin as he fell back in the armchair closest to her.

"Practice is getting later and later James. It's a wonder that they haven't all quite on you. Or are you seducing various members of the Potter Fan Club in the locker room after practice?" Lily looked up giving him a coy smile.

James let out a deep laugh. "I wish. Sirius was late from practice, so I made him stay late and do laps. I swear he thinks that just because I am his best friend and Captain that I will let me off the hook." He started to slip off his boots. "Why Lily were you starting to worry? Miss me did you?"

It was Lily's turn to laugh. "You do wish don't you! Please, I was enjoying peace and quite for once."

"Well, next practice I expect you to be there at eight o'clock sharp in the locker room so that I can seduce you Miss Evans."

Lily raised her eyebrow at him. "I am most definitely not a member of you fan club, so you can just keep dreaming Mr. Potter."

"Well then please don't wake me up!" Wow was it his imagination or was she actually letting him flirt with her. He moved to the floor and crawled over to where she as lying. He arm brushed her as he rested next to her. "Have you done your potions homework yet?"

Lily stiffen as his arm brushed hers. Shaking off the feeling, she finished the last line of her ancient ruins paper. "No I was saving it for last." She looked up at the smile he was giving her. "Oh no you don't. I'm not going to let you copy off of my homework!"

"You wound me!" he said dramatically, placing his hand over his heart. "Not even in our next lifetime would I presume that you would do my work for me. I just thought that we could work together. I'll do my fair share. Hell maybe I'll even know what it means when we're done, instead of just scribbling the answer from the book." He gave her his best puppy dog eyes and instantly he could she that she had caved.

"Alright, but remember I know where you sleep. Will you grab my bag while you're up?" She looked up and James was already picking it up for her. He really was considerate when he wanted to be.

"Anything for my Lily"

"Don't make me start calling you Potter again!"

James entered the great hall immediately seeing Lily sitting with Mary and the other Marauder's. He sat down across from Lily giving her one of those smiles that most girls go crazy for. "Hey there McKinnon, how are you?" However he never took his eyes of Lily.

Mary look from James to Lily then back to James. She just shook her head. "Good. How about you James, how have things been going?"

James now focused all of his attention to Lily. "Why did Slughorn keep you back after class? Is everything ok?"

Sirius looked shocked. "Lily your Slughorn's little potions princess, what could you have possibly done wrong?"

"Nothings wrong. He just sad that James homework was done exceptionally well last night and wanted to make sure that he didn't steal mine while I was sleeping."

James seemed to choke and spew pumpkin juice all at the same time. He didn't even have to look up to know that Lily was now covered in his juice. All he could do at this point was put his head in his hands.

Remus and Sirius seemed to be talking at the same time; "James your Head Boy, please tell me you didn't!" and "Good one! I wish I would have thought about that sooner. Man next time you better share!"

"He didn't steal my homework." Lily said while casting a quick charm to clean up the pumpkin juice.

Once again Remus and Sirius seemed to be talking at the same time; "He didn't!"

James took his head out of his hands and looked up. He could just feel his face burning as his eyes meet Lily's. "Sorry about the juice. What did you tell him?" Everyone was now staring at him. "What is a matter with all of you?"

For the third time in the last ten minutes Remus and Sirius blurted something out simultaneously; "You just apologized to Lily." and "Dude, your blushing."

"I didn't think that it was possible James, you just got even redder. Anyway I told Slughorn that I have been tutoring you and explaining the potions. He was quite impressed, something about how he couldn't believe that someone finally go thru to you!" James was giving her that goofy grin again. "He said that if I continue to work with you that you might even get good enough scores to earn an extra N.E.W.T. for Auror training. You could test out of having to take potion in Auror training altogether." She couldn't help but giggle at the look of awe on James' face.

"I just love this woman!" James stood up leaning over the table. He placed his hands on Lily's cheeks and planted a peck right on her lips. She was so stunned that she just sat there looking at him as he turn walking straight out of the great hall.

Within seconds there were whispers all over the hall. "James just kissed Lily and he is still living!" "I always knew they would get together one day." "Do you think it was a prank." "He said he loved her! I'll never have a chance with him now!"

Sirius nudged Lily in her side. "Lily ,my darling, I think you have my best friend bewitched. No pun intended."

All Lily could do was nod her head.


	5. Chapter 5

Hi everyone,

Sorry it has been a few weeks since I have updated. I have issues with my back. Between that and taking care of my two children, it has been all I could manage. I have to admit I am a little hurt by only having 6 reviews. So if you read this please leave a review! I would mean the world to me. Hope you like it. Also the next few chapters should start to steam up! Enjoy.

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It had only been one day since the scene in the great hall and Lily had been told "Congratulations" well over a dozen times. She couldn't manage to go anywhere without whispers erupting. She was going to kill James once she got her hands one him.

That seemed to be problem right now, she couldn't find James. In fact she couldn't find any of the guys. She had been all over the castle and the grounds, still no site of them. It was almost time for supper, so she decided to head to the Great Hall and wait there. If there was anything she could count on was that none of them ever missed a meal.

When she entered the Great Hall, sure enough they were one of the only ones there, except for a few first years. Making her way to them she noticed that Remus was missing from the group. Then it dawned on her, it was a full moon tonight. Of course Remus would be on his way to the shack by now. She had been used to tracking the full moons and covering for him when he was unable to patrol with her the past two years. This year she and James made certain that he was not scheduled during the full moon to ensure that there would be no question asked.

Lily was about to sit down when Sirius stood up shoving as many sandwiches as he could fit into his pockets and Peter practically ran out. James stood up looking down at her with that lopsided grin. "Oh no you don't! I have been looking for you all day and your not going to run off now."

He gave her a chuckle. "So you have been looking for me all day have you?" All Lily could do was gap at him. She should have known that he would turn this around on her. "For some odd reason, today I have had several guys telling me what a lucky bloke I am. Funny isn't it?"

"Ahh! I can't go anywhere without everyone talking about your big display yesterday! You know exactly what they are saying. They think that were together, as a couple."

James could help but smile. She was so cute when she got irritated. He leaned down, his voice now deep. "I think their on to something, don't you?" With that he followed Sirius out the door.

Lily stopped dead in her tracks as she watched him stride thru the doors of the Great Hall. What was he saying? Surely he didn't mean that, they were friends now. Yeah, he still joked about them hooking up, but he hadn't actually asked her on a date in months. Lily must have been standing there for a while lost in her thoughts; next thing she knew Mary was standing in front of her.

Mary looked at Lily with quite a bit of amusement. She waved her hands in Lily's face, "Is anyone home in there?" Lily seemed to notice her now. She watched as Lily sat down rather quickly. "Are you alright? You're a bit shaken."

Alice laughed as she sat down across from them. "James is finally starting to get to you isn't he? I always knew he would."

Lily looked up in horror. "What do you mean getting to me? I have no idea of what you are talking about! What makes you think that this is about James?"

"Well, we know that this is about James because when we were walking in Sirius was yelling at him to hurry up that Lily was still going to be here when he got back. And we know that he is getting to you because you were doing your zone out thing that you do when something is bothering you." Alice knew she was right when Lily just looked down pushing her food around her plate.

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It was now eleven o'clock that night and Lily hadn't seen James since the beginning of dinner. If he was out with Sirius doing a prank she was going to kill him. He could lose his badge if he got caught. Then again he had not been in on any of the pranks this year. He had promised Lily at the start of the year that he would do his very best at his position of Head Boy. And he had been true to his word; no pranks, no sneaking out unless he was going to the Gryffindor Tower to hang with the guys. Lily could hardly fault him for that.

Maybe he was out with a girl? She felt slightly sick to the stomach at the thought. There was a time when James had a new girl every other day, but then again she hadn't seen him with a girl since last year sometime. Normally when a girl had a date with James she would make sure that it was all over the school in a matter of minutes, however the only thing being talked about right now was James and Lily.

The more she thought about the situation the more she was certain that he wasn't out with a girl. Lily was liked by all; however her temper was as legendary as the Marauder's pranks. She was positive that no girl would touch James while he was with her, for fear of felling her wrath. Even though they weren't together, she suddenly felt pleased that the rest of Hogwarts believed they were.

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James uttered the password then stumbled into the Heads common room. He made it half way across the room before his legs gave out and he knocked over a small side table. As he lay on the floor he saw the fire light back up. He hazily gazed in the direction of the fire and saw her turning toward him. He has counted on her being asleep when he got back. How in the hell was he going to explain this. "Oh Shit" was all he could think at the moment.

Lily was going to rip him to pieces when she got her hands on him. However when she reached James it looked like someone had already beat her to it. "Where in the bloody hell have you been. It's four o'clock in the morning!" As she bent down to help him up she realized just how bad a shape he was in. "Oh my god James. We have to get you to Madam Poppy!"

"No!" said James trying to pull himself up.

"James Potter, you have to get to the hospital wing this instant!"

"Lily just help me to my bed and I'll be fine. Please! I can't go to there, Poppy will ask to many questions." He could tell that she wasn't to keen on the idea and it was going to take some more convincing. "Please Lils. You can heal me! You know you can, so don't try to deny it!" He looked up into her hypnotic green eyes and could see that she was giving in.

As she went to help him up, he broke out into a grin that grew into that bright genuine smile. Even if she wanted to, Lily couldn't tell him no after she saw that smile. "What makes you think that it will be any better if you stay here?"

He was on his feet now with his arm around Lily's shoulder. She had her arms around his waist trying to steady him and they closed the distance to his bed room. This was much better than the hospital wing. He would come back in this state every night if it meant he could be this close to her. "Lets see; the cold dark hospital wing with Poppy or here with you in heaven? Not much of a choice if you ask me."

Lily chuckled and rolled her eyes. "Save your lines for somebody else James."

He groaned, if only it was a line. She looked like an angle with tank nightdress that fell right in the middle of her thigh. God, what he would give to run his hand up it, just to touch the smooth skin of her legs.

"Did I hurt you?" Lily could help but worry about him as she helped him into his bed.

"Yeah. I guess you could say that." He watched as Lily pulled off his shoes and socks. This wasn't exactly what he envisioned when he dreamed of her undressing him, but hell at this point he would take what he could get.

"Are you able to lift up some so I can get your shirt off?" He rose up and braced himself on his elbows. She reached the hem of his shirt, her finger barely brushed over his chest as she removed it.

James struggled to hold back a smirk as Lily's checks started to redden. His gaze followed her hands as she fumbled to get his belt undone. By the time she had his pants unzipped, her face matched her hair.

"James lift up a bit so I can get your pants off." Instantly she realized what she had just said. He was never going to let her live this down.

"Well if you insist. I thought that you would at least take me to dinner first." She was going to kill him for that and he was going to enjoy every minute of it. He maneuvered so that she could slide his pants down.

"I would watch what I say if I were you! I might just give you the wrong potion by mistake." James joking seemed to calm her nerves some. Lily couldn't believe the witty quips that were coming out of her mouth. She was flirting with a nearly naked James.

"Point taken"

"I've got to go get stuff. I'll be back in a second." With that Lily fled the room.

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As she walked back into the room with the necessary potions, she had almost convinced herself that she felt nothing when she undressed James. That thought flew straight out the window when she saw him lying on the bed waiting for her to return. She decided that the safest thing at the moment would to focus on being mad at him. Lily sat down on the side of the bed to assess his injuries. She started to apply a healing ointment to cuts on his back. "What happened James? What the hell were you doing out until four in the morning?"

"Lily I can't tell you." He knew he couldn't lie to her; there was no bother even tiring.

"My god James, you've been attacked! I deserve to know!" Looking over his wounds it dawned on her. She gasp! "You weren't in the forest were you?" She began to franticly search his body.

He knew precisely what she was looking for. "I wasn't bit."

She stopped and stared at him. So he was attacked by a werewolf. "How did you get away? Werewolves can't resist flesh and blood. You should have been ripped to pieces!" Before she knew what she was doing, her arms were wrapped around James holding him for dear life.

James was shocked as Lily held him, but only for a second. He enclosed her in his arms and that was when he felt a tear run down her face onto his chest. "Shh. Its ok. I'm here." He held her tight as she sniffled. "I'm ok luv." He stroked her hair.

After she had composed herself, she began to process this new information. She bolted upright and looked him dead in the eyes. At once she knew, but there was no way it could be possible. "The only way that you wouldn't have been bitten, is if you were an animal. And the only way that you would have been an animal is if you were an Animagi."

He had suspected that she would find out eventually, he just never got around to how he was going to explain it. He just looked at her not knowing what to say.

"Oh shit, you are aren't you? Considering McGonagall doesn't have a clue, I would guess your unregistered." She was starting to get hysterical. "James! You could go to Azkaban for that!" Not noticing that James arms were still around her waist, she went to stand up.

He tighten his grip, not letting her have a chance to get away. "Stay calm and I'll explain everything." When she remained seated, he took it as a sign to continue. "In fifth year Sirius, Peter, and I became Animagi to help Remus out with his transformation. After knowing how hard it is for him and what he has to go thru it was the least I could do. You most likely think I've fell off my broom one to many times? Lily please, you can't tell anyone!"

"I might be Head Girl, but I know when the rules need to be broken." She could fell him tense up around her. "And this is one of those times." James let go of a breath that he didn't realize that he had been holding. She smiled as she continued to apply the cream to his cuts. "I wouldn't turn you in for being there for your friend. In these times I wouldn't register either. In the middle of a war it could save your life." As she looked up at him, she could see the admiration in his eyes. It was so intense that she couldn't hold his gaze.

Finishing with his cuts, Lily then handed him a small bottle of potion. "Drink this, it's Sleeping Draught." She grabbed her wand and moved the large cushy arm chair that was in the corner of the room closer to the bed.

James watched as she went to went to move off of the bed. "You're not going to sleep in that chair are you?"

"Well yeah. You really don't need to be left alone tonight." She watched as he pulled the cover back on the bed, so that she could get into the bed next to him.

"Come on Lils. I'll behave myself." His prayers were answered when he saw her lips turn into a weary smile. She made her way around the bed and climbed in. As she laid down she instinctively moved close to him. Drifting off to sleep as soon as her head hit the pillow, she could feel James wrap her up in his strong muscular arms. Giving into bliss she snuggled into his body, letting his scent over whelm her.

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